Further to Cyd's excellent comments, I would add on T&Cs
make sure you exclude all those with less than 5 positive feedback.
exclude all overseas bids.
Otherwise you get the (few) muppets who register a new ID, win your auction and have NO intention of paying: or the Western Union scam.
(and if you read the above and have no idea what I'm talking about do a search and find out. You'll be prime picking for a con. Intelligent precautions avoid that. So take them)
madf
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Whilst supporting madf's sensible comments, it's worth remembering that even ordinary newspaper advertisements bring in their share of scam merchants or companies stating they have "clients waiting" or offering to sell your vehicle for you (for a fee of course and almost certainly not to be trusted).
If you feel up to it, have a go! Nothing to lose and everything to gain it would seem.
I was going to mention that a forum member recently described a successful car sale on e-Bay, but blue_haddock has already referred to his post in question above.
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I'd say go for it. I've sold a couple of cars and bought a couple on eBay. Nothing too much to add to the above good advice. Be honest with the condition; show pics of any known faults; answer queries promptly and show the q&as on the ad. I like to have a low start price which tends to get people interested, if you can take a punt and have the nerve set no reserve - the chance of a bargain gets more people bidding. I've done this twice and both times ended up with more than I expected for the car. Plus you are sure the car will be out of you hair in 10 days time. Make sure the auction ends on a weekend evening - more punters at home and bidding.
Good luck and let us know what happens if you do it.
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Sorry to hijack the post, but do the majority of you think that putting in a Buy it Now price positively influence the buyer?
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Tends to put me off a bit. It also gives away what you think the item is worth. If you have set a reserve, most will assume it is at or near the BIN price and maybe not bid. Most people love the thought of a bargain and once bidding, may well get carried away thus giving you a good return. I've seen several items sell for more than they could be bought new.
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I'm fully behind nick on this one. Most of the stuff I've bought on e-Bay have been computer related and as a buyer I prefer the Buy Now! approach as it usually costs less...:-)
There have been several occasions where I've been outbid for an item in the closing seconds and been delighted as it would have cost me far more than it was worth if I had "won".
Also a favourite trick by sellers is to get mates to "bid" for items and artificially push the price up.
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I agree on keeping the start price low(ish), but I believe a BIN is excellent. I buy stuff using BIN all the time. Don't forget that if someone bids then the BIN disappears and it reverts to a normal auction. What the BIN does is give someone who is serious about buying your type of car the opportunity to do so at an agreed price without having to get into a bidding war. Especially good for those out there who can't be at their computers all the time to monitor the end of the auction or really do need to buy a car quickly.
State in your ad that anyone with less than 5 positive feedback should email you first before bidding. If they do, then demand a £100 deposit off them to allow them to bid. Send them a Paypal invoice for the £100. If they bid without paying it, cancel their bid. This gives those people who have genuinely joined eBay only recently (or specially to buy a car) the opportunity to bid. The deposit can be refunded if they lose and they have the electronic transfer 'documents' as proof and a safety cushion.
This is where I think eBay really scores - you just don't get this kind of interaction with your potential customers with the traditional advert. By noting the number of hits on the ad and looking at how many people are 'watching' you are also not drawn into taking the risk of letting it go to the first person who waves cash under your nose either.
DO NOT be tempted to end the auction early for someone who mails you an offer. Tell them to bid. DO NOT allow any bids from anyone with a net negative feedback (set this in 'my preferences').
I couldn't possibly condone shill bidding. Though it can be very effective, alledgedly.
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Thank you all for taking time to reply, some very interesting points.
Yes i'm going to give it a go and when i do my listing i'll carefully read your valued comments for ideas. i agree with the point that you simply don't get such a detailed ad anywhere else. I'm still a bit perplexed over the buy it now feature though. Not sure if a good idea or not. After reading the pro's i'd say yes i'll use it, then reading the con's no i wont!! The potential scammers out there is a bit worrying too, I have already been contacted by a someone in Nigeria about another listing asking me to send $400. I reported him to eBay.
Mods.. when i list my car is is ok to link it here so you can see it to see what you think or is that a no no?
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You could stick it in the Classifieds too Imagos.
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Adam
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What is shill bidding?
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Shill bidding is where either you or your friends bid on an item to make it look as though there are a number of parties interested in bidding. Once the item has reached a high price the schill bidders stop and an ususpected bidder has paid over the odds for the item.
There was a case in America when an abstract painting was listed for $5.00 and sold for over $90,000. The vendor was a lawyer and along with his friends (a doctor and a dentist) they kept raising the price with numerous bidding handles. After the auction ended the buyer questioned the value of the painting to only find it was a worthless piece of art. Ebay investigated and found the scam and promptly banned the three conspirators for life.
Ebay's help page on this is:
pages.ebay.co.uk/help/policies/seller-shill-biddin...l
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Tends to put me off a bit. It also gives away what you think the item is worth. If you have set a reserve, most will assume it is at or near the BIN price and maybe not bid. Most people love the thought of a bargain and once bidding, may well get carried away thus giving you a good return. I've seen several items sell for more than they could be bought new.
Surely this scenario does not occur when selling cars?
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Don't forget that if someone bids then the BIN disappears and it reverts to a normal auction. >>
Perhaps it may be because I use a different area of e-Bay, but the Buy It Now! opportunity still remains even when bids have been placed.
In fact it's often amusing to see people bid almost right up to the BIN figure, presumably forgetting about p and p having to be added, and paying more for an item than it would have cost in their local shops.
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tinyurl.com/bvoh7
This is the metro that i sold - tatty and pretty much without MOT and it still went for a tidy sum.
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Buy it Now disappears only where the auction is an auction. if you have no choice but to BIN then that's all you get.
Having dealt on ebay for a number of years, I agree that BIN option is great for the buyer who wants something NOW> and cannot wait. So it's worth having. I often buy like that for URGENT items. Having to wait for an auction to end ( I snipe so not a problem as far as computer access is concerend as it's remopte) can be unacceptable for a keen buyer.
I have often wished I used it when the price ends up >10% above the BIN price.
I also agree that adverts MUST close on Saturday or Sundays nights 6 to 10pm. I buy on adverst that close midweeek from 10am to 4pm as prices are MUCH cheaper.
Remember, many buyers are not sophisticated and just bid and bid if theyWANT something. Subtlety? Commercial guile? Most weekend buyers have none of that.
I spent months selling items commercially on ebay. Usage statistics say weeknd selling is best and mid week buying is best.
Time spent on preparing an ad... layout, words, pictures and descriptions .. is worth £££s. And a high start price is a NONO.
Classic example of a very poor ad: tinyurl.com/bqekj (failed to sell 3 times and start price reduced each time...
And a much better one:tinyurl.com/b9zvl
madf
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"Exclude all those with less than 5 positive feedbacks"
So how does a new boy get started?
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So how does a new boy get started?
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Buy small items suchas CDs at first. You feedback will soon build up to the level you need.
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>> So how does a new boy get started? >> Buy small items suchas CDs at first. You feedback will soon build up to the level you need.
But isn't that also how the dodgy characters build up their positive feedback?
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Are you guys talking a cross-purposes? As a seller, you want your buyers to have good feedback, so if selling, exclude (or ask to speak to) those who have less than your threshold. (as an aside I did just this, and spoke to a guy who was bidding, he lost, but I then sold him £600 invoice value/£220 profit on some kit I then bought in, and sold him direct)
As a buyer, you'd be happiest buying from a seller with lots of +ve feedback, of course.
I bought a car via eBay only last week. Not bad, but the seller hadn't put in a full (ie warts and all description). He'd listed one obvious dent, but omitted the heater fan problem (15 mins to fix), and that the sunroof only tilts (no big deal on a banger) However, for £360, long MOT, some Tax, an immaculate interior and good exterior, I wasn't too miffed.
My advice - if in doubt, describe it to the full, using pictures where possible. If the buyer turns up and rejects it on a point you've covered, then tough. If they reject on a valid pont that you've missed, then it's down to you.
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What do you lot think of "This xxxx is advertised elsewhere and I reserve the right to withdraw if it gets sold etc....."
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It wouldn't bother me as I'd only bid at the last minute anyway. I think eBay rules don't allow an item to be withdrawn once a bid has been placed except in some exceptional circumstances. How they would police that is another matter.
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You can't withdraw in the last 12 hours. You can withdraw any time up that that point if the item is no longer available, so if you advertise elsewhere and get good money for it you can pull it if the last 12 hours haven't started ticking. eBay policy allows this.
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You can't withdraw in the last 12 hours. You can withdraw any time up that that point if the item is no longer available, so if you advertise elsewhere and get good money for it you can pull it if the last 12 hours haven't started ticking. eBay policy allows this.
You CAN withdraw within the last 12 hours, PROVIDED it has not met the reserve.
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Stuartli,
If you have an auction with a BIN, then the BIN dissappears after the first bid. If you have a reserve price on the auction also, then the BIN will only dissappear when the reserve has been exceeded.
Personally I find the 'advertised elsewhere' comments a put off and would not include this in my ads. Basically this comment is telling anyone who bids that no matter how serious they are or how reasonable their bid is, they might not get it because you might sell it to the first person who waves cash under your nose. So what's the point in bidding then?
Imagos,
I'm happy to help review your ad, but remember I'm not claiming any expertise. Contact me via my eBay pseudonym cyclone_cyd and we can arrange for you to send me your Turbo Lister ad to look at.
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Sorry to hijack the post, but do the majority of you think that putting in a Buy it Now price positively influence the buyer?
I'd say on something as expensive as a car, a buy it now price isn't realy a good thing. The reason being that if it is low enough to attract an immediate bidder it is too low, and if it is too high no-one will bid. However in an auction situation, provided you have set your reserve at a 'minimum' acceptable level, you may realise more if a couple of people are interested.
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